tawa

tawa
Pronunciation	/ˈta.wa/
Usage	2023: Core (100% ↗︎ )2022: Core (99%)
Book and era	nimi pu
Part of speech	Preposition, content word
Codepoint	󱥩 U+F1969

tawa is a core content word and preposition relating to motion, direction, purpose, and perspective.

Etymology

The word tawa is derived from English towards.

Semantic space

The semantic space of tawa includes motion and movement with varying interpretations. As a content word, it refers to any kind of motion, either going from one place to another or keeping stationary.

palisa uta li tawa wawa　

palisa uta li tawa wawa.

The tongue moves quickly.

Preposition

As a preposition, tawa prototypically refers to the movement from one place to another. By extension, it may be used to introduce a direct object. It may also refer to the perspective of the object to an action.

mi pana e moku tawa sina

mi pana e moku tawa sina

I give food to you.

nasin ona li pona tawa mi

nasin ona li pona tawa mi.

I like their way of doing things. (lit.literal translation 'Their way is good to me.')

Similar to prepositions, it may also be used as the main word inside the predicate.

akesi li tawa ma ante

akesi li tawa ma ante.

The reptile went to another place.

Transitive verb

Difference between the phrases mi tawa tomo and mi tawa e tomo.

When used transitively, tawa refers to causing movement, as in moving an object from being stationary.

kon li tawa e lipu kasi lili

kon li tawa e lipu kasi lili.

The wind moves the little leaves.

ilo tawa li tawa ma ante

ilo tawa li tawa ma ante.

The vehicle (lit.literal translation 'tool of motion') went to another place.

Preverb

The subject of this section is nonstandard and will not be understood by most speakers.

If you are a learner, this information will not help you speak the language. It is recommended to familiarize yourself with the standard style, and to be informed and selective about which nonstandard styles you adopt.

The word tawa may be used a preverb used to express the direction of an action, as described in the Toki Pona Dictionary. Most of the time, tawa preverb can be reanalyzed as a preposition because the word after it is hardly ever transitive.

mi tawa moku e kala

mi tawa moku e kala.

I'll go eat seafood.

pu

In the "Official Toki Pona Dictionary" section, the book Toki Pona: The Language of Good defines tawa as:

PREPOSITION  going to, toward; for; from the perspective of
ADJECTIVE  moving

ku

For Toki Pona Dictionary, respondents in ma pona pi toki pona translated these English words as tawa:

move⁵81–100% of respondents, go⁵81–100% of respondents, toward⁵81–100% of respondents, motion⁵81–100% of respondents, movement⁵81–100% of respondents, towards⁵81–100% of respondents, to⁵81–100% of respondents, for⁵81–100% of respondents, transit⁴61–80% of respondents, travel⁴61–80% of respondents, transportation³41–60% of respondents, trip³41–60% of respondents, walk³41–60% of respondents, advance³41–60% of respondents, onto³41–60% of respondents, transport³41–60% of respondents, pass³41–60% of respondents, walking³41–60% of respondents, migration³41–60% of respondents, departure³41–60% of respondents, from the perspective of³41–60% of respondents, push³41–60% of respondents, march²21–40% of respondents, slide²21–40% of respondents, proceed²21–40% of respondents, forth²21–40% of respondents, drift²21–40% of respondents, according to²21–40% of respondents, mobile²21–40% of respondents, until²21–40% of respondents, transfer²21–40% of respondents, cross²21–40% of respondents, till²21–40% of respondents, approach²21–40% of respondents, forward²21–40% of respondents, momentum²21–40% of respondents, attend²21–40% of respondents, progress²21–40% of respondents

sitelen pona

Egyptian hieroglyphs for legs facing backward and forward

The sitelen pona glyph for tawa (󱥩) represents two legs moving towards the right, following the direction of the text. It can be written with many minor variations, such as whether one or both feet are flat (as though against the ground), angled, or curved. The glyph is a mirror image of kama (kamakama) and also similar to awen (awenawen).

According to jan Sonja, the design was likely inspired by ancient Egyptian hieroglyphs, presumably those of walking legs (Gardiner D54 and D55, respectively). The sitelen pona glyphs resembling them have been since reanalyzed as sharing a leg radical.

sitelen sitelen

The sitelen sitelen glyph for tawa (tawatawa), like all preposition glyphs, is composed of 2 parts: the "head" and the empty "body". When tawa is not used as a preposition, it behaves as one cohesive glyph. However, as a preposition, the "body" is used as a container for its complement.

The origin of the "head" of tawa is unknown.

Further reading

• "tawa" on lipu Linku
• "tawa" on lipu Wikipesija
• "tawa" on English Wiktionary